Rail-supporting bar for street-railways



(No Model.)

J. D. REED. RAIL SUPPORTING BAR FOR STREET RAILWAYS.

Patented Dec. 1'7, 1889.

(WOOL mi/zmyes. five/22 0;: 3234 JZ/z/z I. 196605.

qL /ZW 9%4 kx I1. PETERS. Plmmumu m hw. WashingWnxUI-G UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN D. REED, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSE"TS.

RAIL-SUPPORTING BAR FOR STREET-RAILWAY S.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 417,283, dated December 1'7 ,1889.

Application filed August 8, 1889- To a, whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN D. REED, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bostomin the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Supporting Bars for Street- Railways; and I do hereby declare the followin g to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the acco1npanying drawings, and to figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to supporting-bars for rails on tramways for street-oars or upon other lines of traffic, which are composed of sectional lengths of rails firmly spiked upon a frame-work with longitudinal sills buried beneath the pavement, said bars being employed to support the ends of any two adjacent rails and enable the latter to present a solid smooth surface upon which the wheels are to travel.

The drawings represent,in Figure 1, a vertical longitudinal LGClJlOIl of a portion of two adjacent rail-lengths. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a rail end with the sill and supporting-bar in section. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of a supporting-bar one-half the full size.

In the construction of surface-lines of rails for street-cars, particularly for electric-car service, it is found very difficult to maintain a smooth rail-surface, owing to the uneven joints of adjacent rail-lengths or at thejunotion of rail lengths with switches-dummy or otherwise.

One object of my invention is to overcome such difficulties as now exist in the ordinary method of laying rails, and thereby save the great outlay incidental to the relaying of the entire rail system with heavier rails, should electric cars be generally employed. To such end I cast or otherwise form a supporting-bar 2, preferably of these proportions: length, three feet; width, four inches; depth, two inches; but I do not desire to be limited to such dimensions exactly. Such bar is, however, to be of sufficient strength to resist any strain which may occur at the rail-joints.

(No model.)

The upper surface of the longitudinal sills or timbers 3, composing the sub-frame for support of the rail system, is out out to admit this supporting-bar, such out being of a depth equal to the thickness of said bar, or thereabout, to allow the rail to rest equally upon said sills 3 and the bar. Furthermore, the supporting-bar is formed with a series of holes 6, of a size much larger than the holding: spikes 5, which retain the rails in place. Said holes are to bev filled, preferably, with plugs of wood at. Thus when the spikes are driven home they naturally are wedged and hold (as likewise are held by) the said plugs, and as a consequence the supporting-loaigthe plug, and the spike are bound together as a In this way, even although the sills are unit. cracked or split, or soft from decay, said spikes cannot rise or lift, and the rails are held in place. Moreover, these plugs are of such diameter that the spikes can be driven in obliquely and afford a better hold to prevent the rail from springing or lifting. An important feature in this supporting-bar is that it affords such abearing that itprevents any depression or pounding down in the ends of the rails, and thereby makes a solid, smooth, and continuous surface for the wheels to travel upon.

In connection with an electric system such supporting-bars act as very efficient conductors to convey the electric current across the joints of the rails composing the railway. Thus in lieu of depending upon wire connections the latter may be entirely dispensed with,or the bars maybe employed in connection therewith. However, in either event the resistance is very much lessened, as said supporting-bars materially aid to convey the electric current, and the latter travels with no more resistance than what would occur provided the system was composed of a rail of one continuous length or piece.

As premised above, wire connections may be employed. When such are used, a stout piece of copper wire 7 is generally selected, the extremities of which are secured in the ends of the adjacent rail-lengths in any suitable manner to produce proper metallic connections. Such a wire is shown in the dotted line marked 7. (See Fig. 1.) Preferably such wire is directed transversely of the rail (see Fig. 2) and then longitudinally of the sills to connect with the next rail-length.

\Vhat I desire to claim is 1. A supporting-bar, as described, composed of metal and formed with a series of transverse holes longitudinally arranged and adapted to be filled with wood or analogous materiahsaid holes to be of a diameter larger than the holding-spikes to provide a filling of softer material between the metal composing the plate and that of thespikc, substantially as stated.

2. In combination with two adjacent raillengths and the sills upon which they rest, a metallic supporting-bar, as described, provided with a series of transverse plugs and a series of holding spikes adapted to pass through said plugs and into the substance composing the sills, substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth.

In a surface-rail system, a series of raillengths, the sills upon which they rest, and a series of supportingbars with transverse holesand plugs therein, as stated, combined with the holding-spikes which pass through said rail and the supporting-bar into the sill, and the wire connections, which, with said su evportiug-bar, form electrical connections between two adjacent rail-lengths, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN D. REED. \Vitnesses:

H. E. LODGE, FRANoIs C. STANWoo'o. 

